Maybe I do not know how to do a d rest, but I thought it was simply allowing the primary to go to a warmer temp before fermentation was complete to allow for the diacetyl to be consumed. I never considered racking it first as I thought I needed the full population of yeast to eat the diacetyl.

JoeHPhil wrote:Maybe I do not know how to do a d rest, but I thought it was simply allowing the primary to go to a warmer temp before fermentation was complete to allow for the diacetyl to be consumed. I never considered racking it first as I thought I needed the full population of yeast to eat the diacetyl.

Right, diacetyl is a problem (usually). If you taste it, you need to leave it on the yeast for a few days to clean it up. Racking at that point would be premature. Sorry if I was unclear. My point is you should never rack without tasting, as tasting will let you know if there is still diacetyl, acetaldehyde, etc. in your beer, for which the solution is to leave it on the yeast for a few more days.